Worst Day Ever

Freakkin neverending lectures till 6 in the evening. Sprained ankle and horrible headache. Out of dispirin.

Cut finger playing guitar. Not started studying macroeconomics.

I need a life. And also a new brain that doesn't crash so often.

And it's too bloody cold.

Bah.

Nemesis

If I were a superhero, my most dreaded enemy would not be cat-who-craps-in-ur-room woman. It would also neither be moronic-youtube boy nor the plethora of daft punks that populate society trying to unleash irritatingly irritating internet memes on us everyday.

No - for these mere distractions are easy to deal with, the solutions being - lock your room, leave hurting comments so he leaves youtube forever amd cut their hands off with a blunt linoleum knife respectively.

Instead, my arch nemisis would be my formidable inability to get up after every nap. I have a zillion things to do and atleast 5 of them are interesting things. Yet I just lie there, staring at shadows on the wall.

I mean seriously. Why is it so god-damned difficult? I mean evolution. Evolution-damned difficult? Screw you "god".

Yes, back on topic - this is a sincere plea to all my readers (all 9 of you) - please, please tell me how I can get up while just loafing around completely awake but totally enthuless to actually get up - for it is robbing me of my life!

Can Ethics Be Taught?

The conversations between professors have a bizarre and curious sound to our conceited ears. On our ongoing course on Ethics, we, we being two professors and the class, discussed some of the worlds problems - Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and even Iraq. Starting at Is Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) beneficial for society?, we somehow reached the sublime ideas of the economics of kleptocracies and the examined the fundamental ideas behind why Nigeria, a shining example of a progressive third world country in the 1950s (It had a far greater economic development as compared to India at that time), has turned into a failed state doused in ethnic violence in the short span of half a lifetime - It has to do with the politics of rents, which I may explain later.

The very idea of a course on Ethics seems peculiar. As we concluded in the very first session of this course 4 sessions ago, Ethics cannot be taught. And yet we have a course on it, which gives an appearance that the whole bit is just an exercise in futility, a whim perhaps of our lofty faculty. Why do we have this course?

I should explain that the whole Nigeria part of the last session is remarkably interesting. I cannot vouch for its correctness - surely I cannot argue for or against such an abstract idea (economic rents leads to corruption, economic production does not). I can merely state that the correct or not, the idea had me hooked. After pondering about the idea, I do not think I can put it down in words. Perhaps we can discuss it over coffee someday.

The conclusion though, I can state confidently: Big Oil, or in general, giant corporations, are largely responsible for Nigeria's state. Trying to buy peace for themselves (and their employees) from local factions has led to the factions being armed, being better armed, and eventually leading to bloodshed of unparalleled magnitude and the corrupt kleptocracy that we see now.

And here is where it connected with CSR! What is CSR? Essentially corporations buying peace for themselves by helping the local populace! Which companies carry out the most CSR activities? Those who operate in urban areas? No! It it those very companies who operate in rural areas, where the law is less enforced, where there is some form of local goonda or landlord that [the companies] spend trainloads of money on this great idea called CSR - so that the locals will leave them to carry out their business. Doing this is just one step removed to directly paying the local mafias money to allow business and perhaps a second cousin to paying hafta to do business.

Would you be part of such a corporation? Often, what choice will you have? Will you be a whistle-blower if you see something wrong? The first idea that that we are told as we enter the hallowed portals of multibillion-dollar companies is this:

1. You are merely a cog in the wheel.
2. Be a team player. What they actually mean is suspend your own thougts and do what you are told.
3. The most important one: If you blow the whistle on something we are doing that is ethically or morally wrong, be prepared to watch your career suffer, both inside the firm and with other firms.

Now obviously they sugarcoat these ideas in sweet words and motivational speeches. But the idea remains the same, even if it is masked by a thick veil of "gratitude towards workplace and society".

And now the objective of this course seems clear: To warn us about the future, so that we are alert about this, for we are the next generation of corporate managers. Also, I guess they hope that some of us will take heed to the words and not remain silent spectators to ethically corrupt practises. It is just this hope, in my opinion, that brings some of our best professors to class to talk to us about philosophy in a non-credit course. Yes, lets be honest - this is no course on Ethics. It is a course on philosphy. And I think it is one of the most intellectually stimulating and important courses we have.

Rounding up the CSR bit - What is the alternative to CSR? Instead of spending the money directly, the company should pay it out as a dividend and let the individual indulge in socially constructive work. Firstly, it is not the place of a company to put money at tasks other than its mandate. Bill Gates is a philanthropost but he doesn't spend Microsoft's money on it - he uses his own. Ditto for Azim Premji.

Before today, I unquestioningly believed that CSR was great for society. Philosophy class is an eye-opener.

Chilled

A chilly December Winter's night, sitting under the moon and stars. Comfy sofas and a tall chilled mint hookah. Butterflies, green, red, yellow, blue, on the wall - turning slowly as coals burn bright and crackle.

A lone guy with his guitar sings for us. Far from the streets, it's quiet. A little retreat. Hot creamy chicken soup and, for once, no work to go around.

Life is looking up. A perfect end to a hectic year. And if I can manage that trek at the turn of the year, I'll just sit and look at stars far from the city.

Peace seems just within grasp now.

Smooth Sailing

Life is good. Coursework has reduced substantially and there's lots of free time this semester. All I do everyday is guitar - gym - badminton. Ain't it the life? :-D

We still have classes for 6 days a week unfortunately. But having evenings to do all the nothings I want to is great. I think I can pick up on those projects I've wanted to do but haven't had the time. Along with getting back to Maya, Photoshop, Vue and Bryce :-).

I'm thinking of some new photography stunts - HDR photography and Multi-pass photography. I shall get down to it in a few days.

But now, it's time to clean my room. Tada!

Exit Wound and Microscopes

Imagery springs forth from a disturbed mind:

Made in Photoshop.

Someone keep the city safe.

Interview Horror Stories

Some people are geniuses. Here is a story of one.

His name was Broca (Name changed to protect identity). Broca was sitting for summer placements. He enters his interview and Mr. Interviewer kindly asks him to sit before asking, "So tell me something about the current Indian economy."

Broca says, "Sure. Could I have a minute to think please?".

Now Broca was a genius. He had spent the last night researching on things like the Barrack Obama, India-China, the company's director's name and such stuffs. He was well prepared for this interview. The whole of the night. Extremely well prepared.

He was also sleepy.

So, in his minute of soltitude, he drifts off to sleep sitting in the interviewee's chair - the kind of "I must stay awake. But damn I'm soo sleepy" kind of drifty sleep that we all experience in a class where time seemingly stands still. A minute later the interviewer wakes him and asks if he wants water.

Yes, this is the story of Broca the Genius. It is a true story. He really fell asleep during an interview!

Stray Cat Strut

Today I tripped and fell down stairs and managed not to break any bones. I did twist my left ankle rather badly though. But this post isin't about that.

No. This is instead about Cats.

I'll be the first to admit that in all my years, I haven't associated with them, or got to know them, or thrown them a bone or anything. But lately, cats seem to have been thrust into my life like things that are thrusted into lives without being wanted.

Just the other day, I came back from class, all tired and weary. I open my door and what do I see? A cute orangey cat is plonked right in the middle of my room, staring at me with it's bright green eyes - pretending as if the room is her Kingdom and my books are her subjects. "Off with his head!" she thinks maybe?

"Wierd!", I think. "Damn, confounded! He's back!", she thinks.

And runs straight out of the open door.

Now this is a great mystery to me. How in the world did it get in there? Did it enter in the morning before I left for class? Or is this simply a minifestation of Schrödinger's Uncertainty Principle? But anyhow, I moved on to more profound thoughts, like "What's for lunch?" and soon the Cat-incident was forgotten.

Not yet beaten, the cute cat has yet another brush-in with me.

It was a dark and stormy night. No it wasn't. Yes it was. No, let me tell the story. Damn inner concience.

I was sleeping. I must've been 6 AM in the morning when I heard a thud. Slowly I raise my head and I see a cat scrambling up my bookshelf! There happens to be a window above my room door and she had somehow managed to get up there an jump into my room!

But silly cat.. realizes I'm inside and must now scramble out. She jumps onto my desk, scrambles up my bookshelf, drops all my cards (yes some friends did send me cards on my birthday. Shame on you, all those who didn't.), and jumps out the window again to land on the other side with yet another thud.

Pretty damn cool.

And that brings me to the end of my rant, and to the point which I might as well have just stated instead of rambling on. And that point is this: I wish I could land on my feet like a cat instead of twisting it and having to hop around on one foot like a (slightly defective) rabbit.

Llama's Carpet

You spiked my arm
But you missed the vein
Now its all gone
But the scars remain

~ Mark Knopfler

Mirror Mirror

Mirror Mirror on the Wall
Who's the Darkest of Them All?

Mirror Mirror on the Wall
Shall I leave my Friends alone
Hidden in a Twilight Hall?

Mirror Mirror on the Wall
Shall we dare the Dragon?

Mirror Mirror on the Wall
Gone is the Wisdom of a Thousand Years
How shall We leave the Lost Road?

Insanity said Coldly:
Be aware the Storm gets closer.
And the Story Ends.

... I'm lost in a R. R.'s fantasy world of wars and wolfs. Time to spread your little wings and fly away. Fly away, far away!

Blood Sugar

Tiny Rebel Moments

Today I submitted my exam paper to Prof. Cauchy, the famous mathematician.

No, he doesn't really teach us - he's French. He is also dead.

The punchline being ofcourse that in the exam answer sheet, where it said "Name of Professor" instead of writing Prof. Koshy, a Mallu marketeer (and a God-level prof), I wrote in big, bold letters, "Prof. Cauchy".

Yesterday, our paper was to "Prof. M.S. Sriram". Feeling adventerous, I swished my pen twice, deftly converted the S's to dollars and wrote "Prof. M.$. $riram" instead. It fits perfectly - he teaches us Accounting! :-D

Back in college I was a rebel. I grew my hair and I jumped out of classrooms via the windows. I scandalized teachers and back in IIT I was a "rebel" too - I took pride in *zero* studies and I generally pretended to admire Ernesto Che Guevara and I also sneaked my car (with Cake music (Frequent car-ers will know what I mean)) out late at night when my parents were asleep.

But no more. In this new college of mine, jumping out of windows is a long way off - decorum demands that I don't even sneeze the wrong way. That's why there's such joy in the little things - a word here, a pun there.

Reports lined with Douglassey phrases and a paragraph in the middle written in Shakespearean English. Vandalism of Profs names in exams. Just little things. But they mark my existence more than all the 23-page assignments that I write.

Today

Today is Friday. It started at a second past midnight.

At a second to midnight, I was on Page 4. At a second past midnight I was still on Page 4. Two hours past midnight and I had moved on to Page 5.

The report didn't seem never-ending. Worse: It seemed never-progressing. Statistical analysis, Function Words, Neural Networks and Madhavan's demented-man laugh floated in and out my conciousness. Excel 2007 focused and blurred as I rubbed my weary eyes.

Four hours past midnight and I fall asleep. Drop asleep would be more accurate. Precisely on the Delete key.

Six hours past midnight. I discover my folly. If it weren't for the miracle of Command-Z, I'd have been strung and quartered by my group already.

Eight and a half hours past midnight. I run to class. There is a surprise marketing quiz. Ouch that hurts.

Twelve hours past midnight. Twelve hours to midnight. I skip class and continue writing the report.

Ten hours to midnight. Page Nineteen. She calls and says that there's a surprise Financial Markets quiz. The light at the end of your tunnel is just a freight train coming your way.

Eight hours to midnight. The report has now grown to 23 pages. Let It Be, Let It Be, Let It Be Let It Be. If there must be an answer, Let It Be. ... And it's off with the Report's Head. SHIT. What SHIT? Well you've heard of JIT? Just In Time. This is all SomeHow In Time.

Seven hours to midnight. My group is proud of me. They treat me to my first meal of the day. Thanks guys.

Six hours to midnight. Mahindra War Room Presentation. Quite spiffy actually.

Three hours to midnight. I run out of dinner leaving a poor soul stranded. Sorry. I had to attend the Mathematical Finance Lecture.

One hour to midnight. The first mail check of the day. The first free minute of the week. The first blog post of the month.

Two minutes to midnight. I like that song.

One second to midnight. It's Saturday now. Time to prepare for today's classes.

Contri Dinner

Have you ever heard of "going dutch"? It's when everyone pays for their own share of dinner as opposed to the traditional "man pays" approach. That ofcourse, is the traditional meaning of "going dutch". In our reference frames, it has more to do with Tetrahydrocannabinol.

Anyhow, you see I've always harboured plans of complete and total world domination. I know "complete and total" is a little redundant, but complete world domination just isin't enough for the likes of me. To this end, I have cultivated a friends-circle of like minded Evil villians for two reasons: One, to learn of new and improved techniques of evilness and two, so I know who all to backstab when I *finally* do take over the world.

Once, in a brilliant spurt of enthu, rarely observed in sloths, Godwani (friend from aforementioned evil circle) contemplated that we should have a blog where we can discuss our plans of world domination, and also coffee. Hence, Contri Dinner was born. With 4 posts in 4 years, this was clearly the highest priority in our lives. Rest assured, the blog lay dormant, like a mango-seed in a desert, waiting for the day that someone has pity on it and puts it out of its misery eats it (all puns intended).

But now that we're in Ahmedabad at the same time, with no option but to mug away to glory, we've decided (actually, I've decided and I'll beat 'gid with a stick till he agrees) to bring the blog back to life. Ofcourse, the blog has come to life before. 3 times to be precise. Lets hope that this time it doesn't lapse back into one of those unconcious thingies, for I would be too embarassed by this and I might have to climb into a little black corner of the web and refuse to ever come out.

Anyhow, have a read. The first post is http://contridinner.blogspot.com/2006/03/food-or-something-like-that.html and the latest one can be found at http://contridinner.blogspot.com/. Add it to your Google Readers, or whatever you use. And do post comments too. We'll be back with enough random bullshit in the coming days.

Any donations towards our effors of total and complete world domination are highly appreciated.

Kung Fubu Panda

(by KP and Jose)

The rotund warrior settled into his chair with the silky smooth precision of a crab, his substantial behind settling into the soft padding material displacing it so that it snuck up the nether-region between the cheeks and there it stayed. Stayed atleast, till he shifted for more comfort.

Few dared approach him lest they be blinded by the rays os SHEER OSSOMNESS that emanated so freely from him.

The Rotund Warrior then took a bite from his sandwich , picked up the phone and used his fearsome voice
to sell stuff.

Dreamsatwork presents: Kung-Fubu Panda as he should have been :)

(Statutory Warning: Bad Photoshopping Ahead - proceed at your own risk:)

Blackjack

Here I sit
Alone by a balcony
Spent by the Summer Day
Watching clouds in the Starry Night
E'er forming shapes

Here I sit
Alone in a filthy room
My weekly dreary Ceremony
Watching silent raindrops
Forming patterns on the Desert Floor

Here I sit
Lit only by a screen
A bat for flying company
Don't fly into the fan you'll die
Idiot.

Here I sit
On a yellow ledge
Before the new day dawns
Wondering why I write these
Twenty One words everynight.

Phobia

Children are victims. Parents fill kids' consciousness with their own irrational fears and doubts. Some are religious nut-jobs while others scream at the mere sight of a spider. Hence, children are victims of their parent's credulity.

I am extraordinarily lucky: My father does not fear snakes and I don't pay any heed to those measly spiders as they skitter past, they being afraid lest I wield my rolled newspaper like a club. Neither do I suffer from a fear of a large number of mythical and supposedly dangerous scaled creatures.

However, even so, I was not spared. I was indoctrinated with the strict loathing and fear of just one thing: Shopping.

Indeed, my father is the epitome of the anti-shopper. Bring him into a shop, or near a shop, or indeed in the vicinity of shoppers, and he goes off like an overzealous burglar alarm! In his humble opinion, shoppers can go f*ck themselves. Scum-of-the-earth, villains and other colourful descriptions follow in quick succession.

With a role model as this, how could I resist? Thus, I came to dislike shopping as well.

Strangely though, even though it's taken a while, I realise I actually don't mind shopping. Don't get me wrong - I'm not in the "Shopping is a recreational activity" kind of zone, but I'm cool with a "If I need a shirt I don't mind going and looking around" kinda thing.

But ofcourse, like first-geneation atheist children, it takes a while for the scars to heal. So, dear friends, If I ever fall asleep standing whilst you "check out" clothes, please note that I should not be blamed: It was the few days my dad went shopping that are responsible here.

Now I'm Free... Free Falling!

Yes I know that this blog hasn't been updated in a while. It has to do with the fact that I don't have free time anymore.

But enough with the excuses. I wanted to post this set of pics for a while now... Pics of SKYDIVING! :-D

Not surprisingly, my mom was adamantly refusing to let us (my bro and me) skydive. So when I saw a poster which read: "Skydiving: Because your mother told you not to!", I just had to click it :-D

And yeah. Skydiving is like the most awesome thing in the world. First they strap you on nice and tight to a harness and take you up to about 10,000 feet. And then they open the door! Wow the rush as you see the ground, all tiny now, with the wind in your face. It's awesome. And then you realize, "Frack, I'm about to jump out of an airplane at 10,000 feet!!!!" - The most awesome feeling *ever*!

When you jump out, it's cray! You're all tumbling and you see the sun, the plane, the horizon, the sun, the ground, the plane and you're turning and rotating and falling and it's a total overload!

Then comes the freefall! For almost 30 seconds! Falling at a terminal velocity of 220 Kmph!!! Scream your heart out! And then the parachute deploys and the final graceful fall gently to the ground like a feather.

Second Thoughts

I think I should turn Emo. I already have the looks. Now all I need to do is cultivate suicidal tendencies, pretend to be sad and depressed and hate the world and also cut myself once a week.

That all ofocourse is the first step in turning Goth. The second step is, apparently, turning Goth. So I can dye my black hair even-blacker, wear a nice black cape and go around saying things like "This is so CVLT man" and "That's is so CVLT maan"

This Is NiagraaaaaAAAA!!!

Okay enough with the 300 parody already. Onwards to the pictures! (I'll write something about the trip when I get time!)

Savannah

Savannah (disambiguation)

1. Savannah, a Native American word describing "land which is without trees but with much grass either tall or short"
2. Savannah, Georgia, a city known for its historic district
3. GNU Savannah, an aggregation of software development projects affiliated with the GNU project
4. NS Savannah, the first nuclear-powered merchant ship
5. Savannah, a person, commonly described as "A-DUH!"
6. Savannah, a computer graphic painting

I'm off on a holiday now. And then I'm off to Ahmedabad. Looking eagerly forward to both! :D

PS: The above picture was rendered in Vue and post processed in Photoshop :-)

Staccato Begging Sessions Roll On Mercilessly! In Paris!

Have a look at this!

The description says it all: "A really bad guitarist was boring the Parisian crowd by singing a Britney Spears song. A couple of Indian students hijacked his concert and came to the rescue..."

That's our "lookah" Saajid on the hijacked guitar, and a bunch of others. Now, we've done this at Hiranandani and at Mood I. But Paris is a whole new level!

Way to go guys! (I'm so proud :P)

[Video follows]

Black Hole Sun

Black Hole Sun
Won't you come
Wash away the pain

The Galaxy in an Eye

What do you spy with your little eye? Do you see outward, or inward: Do you see The Galaxy or An Eye? Or do they both just seem to merge into each other, like it was meant to be?

It is quite funny that I should turn to art now after all these years. I have always steadfastly maintained that my skill at drawing is a complete zero: I can't sketch to save my life!!. But somehow with a computer at my hands, I feel safe. I can venture out and draw that line, turn it around and dash colour at it.

It is the medium that makes all the difference.

May 25th is Towel Day! Don't Panic!

Its just 4 more days to Towel Day (May 25th). Isnt this just amazing??!
How're you all planning to celebrate?

I plan on constructing a devious outfit made entirely of towels and a superfluous cape made of red towel material. this shall adorn my royal body for the entire day of Towel Day.

Further, I will carry a dense but radiant towel of my own design which is soaked in nutrients (gin and tonic) and use it to feed for the day. While this may upset some of the world's less knowledgeable minions, it will be good practise for the day when I shall have to hitch hike
across the galaxy.

Indeed it is a Divine and Auspicious sign that Towel Day falls on May 25th, which is indeed the very same day that The Galaxy's most important movie, Star Wars, released many a decade ago.

Darth Vader, in all his Dark-Side-Prowess used to carry a towel with him everywhere. He would breathe through it and it would keep him alive. That's why he sounded like he did.

So, on this day, we pay homage to the great saint that was Douglas N. Adams. May he have his Towel by his side, wherever he is.

Phoneix Rises and Coral Dream

Fire of the Heart (Part II): Phoenix Rises

Coral Dreams

Thanks to Bairathi for reminding me of one of my earliest creations. Looking back, I can only see how crude and unpolished they were. However, I did take it and recolour it, polish it up a bit. That's Phoenix Rises for you.

I've been ever so intrigued by Corals lately. Still incomplete, but I put it up anyway: Coral Dreams.

Wishlist

So yes folks, I'm all set to return to wearing faded jeans, living with spider-webs and being perenially broke. In other words, I'm returning to student life! :-D

In just over a month, I'll be back in a hostel, where I belong. But this time, I want to set it up perfectly. Like an ideal hostel room.

My ideal hostel room so far:

1. Bean Bag (ofcourse)
2. Lappie with a wireless router, an Airport Express perhaps so that I can wirelessly connect speakers
3. Water heater and coffee sachets for instant coffee anytime
4. Fridge - I *am* getting a fridge.
5. Framed artwork and pictures on the walls
6. Wind chimes (I like 'em)
7. A cool light-tower of my own design

This is ofcourse a growing list, and I need more ideas. What would you change in your own ideal hostel room? Drop by ideas in the comments section or mail them to me (just incase you dislike commenting)

Playing Doc

The Symptoms:
1. A sudden change of skin tone
2. Dinky little bikes
3. 10 grand in cash
4. Bacon and ham sandwiches
5. Hammocks
6. Bibinca
7. 603 unread emails

The Diagnosis:
It seems that you have been on a trip to Goa.

Yes, I'm back from Goa now. It was the most fun trip *ever*! And I've also quit my first job. It feels so surreal!

Poets and Artists

Poets and Artists, they seem
Almost perfect lovers to be
With thoughts unusual and colourful
Like a million silver stars that guide.
With Divine Attention to all
Even the vast black night sky!

But Alas,
If only they looked at me so,
Instead of their craftmanship and deeds.

.

Pilgrimage to Work

This is how I will get to work, thanks to the auto-rickshaw strike:

1. Walk 1 Km to the Chandivali bus stop

2. Take a bus from Chandivali to Rambaug (or L&T)

3. Take a bus from there to Goregaon W.

4. Change buses and get one to Inorbit

5. Walk from Inorbit to office (or if I'm lucky, the shuttle car will be available)

Estimated Time of Journey: 2 hours to 2.5 hours

.

Apologies

It's like a layer of symphony over a wall of noise!

~ K "Punchdrunklovesick" P

Biology has phylum, and chemistry has nomenclature. Music has genre. And like all categorizations, it sometimes seems self defeating.

Metal, it seems, has more sub-genres that the kinds of butterflies in this world. Speed Metal, Grind Core Metal, Heavy Metal, yada yada.

Symphonic Death. Oxymoron? Perhaps. I spent a great deal of my final sem debunking the genre and those that listen to it. With a name like Symphonic Death, it was a rather sitting duck-ish target to begin with.

But I admit I was judging the book without even seeing it's cover.

Hide n Seek

A P51 Mustang breaks thru the clouds.

Took me all day to make this :-) An almost perfect way to spend the weekend.

Vortex

Attractor

Innards of the Sun

Mephisto's Soulstone

Hey look!

Mephisto's Soulstone. A sacred gem which captures and binds a soul for all eternity. Mephisto was the Lord of Hatred, eldest of the Three Prime Evils. Captured and Imprisoned inside the Guardian Tower beneath the Great City, he stays forever trapped in Stone; Mephisto's
Soultone.

Zoom in and check out the insides: They're very intricate :-D

Nagaon (Reprise)

Coral Blue

Impersonating Time Travellers Since 2005

Dresden Codak is the coolest, most surreal webcomic I've read! Seriously cool stuff.. It's like someone just picked up on the same style of A Lesson Is Learnt..., and continued drawing!

Actually I think it's even better that A Lesson Is Learnt..., with such dream-like artwork and crisp words intertwined with pickings from modern science, it's like reading an adrenaline injected version of Alice in Wonderland!

Here's a half-page excerpt:


Some really good ones from both webcomics:

From A Lesson is Learnt But The Damage Is Irreversible:
Tiny, Almost Manageable
I Came About The Job
Fat Dale And The Mouse In The Apple Juice

From Dresden Codak:
Take Me To The Future Of Your World
Nuclear Wessels
Absinthe Makes The Heart Grow Fonder

Consider the above as Mandatory Reading ;-)

*grumble grumble*

Complainers are people who bitch, denounce, are fussy and moany. I dislike them. I think everybody should dislike them. They're so dislike-able.

Oh crap! Wait-a-sec. Crap. By writing about how complainers suck, I am now a complainer since I have committed the act, nay: the Grave Sin, of Complaining.

Now since I'm one of them, I might as well make full use of this "oppurtunity" and bitch about something. And that something is: Mobile Phone Operators. Those smug bastards. Think no end of themselves.

But before I start off, I would like to share a quote. Some wise words from a very wise man:

“A bunch of mindless jerks who will be the first with their backs against the wall when the revolution comes.”
~ Douglass Adams (Taken completely out of context) on Mobile Phone Operators

So essentially, Airtel (MPO) refuses to accept my payment of my phone bill for this month. Freakin' retards! You'll go out of business if you don't *take* the money!!! I'm serious here: All my attempts to pay my bill have been met by "We're sorry but we cannot process your payment at this moment as we are facing technical difficulties".

Oh yeah. "Technical difficulties". Very smart. But but... When it comes to cutting off my phone connection - they do it in a jiffy. I wonder why they don't have "Technical difficulties" whilst disconnecting my number. Hmph.

Anywhoo - A short and angry phonecall later (with CustomerCare (Note the irony)), I atleast have my phone still working. Still haven't managed to pay my bill.

I'd switch to another operator in a jiffy if I didn't know that they were all this bad.

Enough complaining for now. Stop smirking. Get back to work. Yes, YOU TOO! :-P

Eye In The Sky

I am the eye in the sky
Looking at you
I can read your mind
I am the maker of rules
Dealing with fools
I can cheat you blind

The Last Act of '2001'

"Sometimes I think we're alone in the universe, and sometimes I think we're not. In either case the idea is quite staggering."

"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic."

"I'm sure the universe is full of intelligent life. It's just been too intelligent to come here."

Wikipedia says, "Sir Arthur Charles Clarke (16 December 1917 - 19 March 2008) was a British author, inventor and futurist." Yes we all know that. Oh crap wait: 19th March 2008. That's today!

Once called "the first dweller in the electronic cottage", his vision of the future, and its technology, have often been prophetic. He predicted the orbits and indeed more importantly the coming of geostationary satellites.

I grew up reading many of his sci-fi novels and stories. Some of them I've read and re-read a zillion times.

But now we must say goodbye to this great author and visionary.

Goodbye.

Sir Arthur C. Clarke has died at the age of 90 in Sri Lanka.

Look At Us, We Have No Fear

Look at us, we have no fear
Said the Ancient Master:
Travelling for so many a-year
We lack our olden lustre.

On a noble mission to find
Another race;
Maybe human-kind
Or a face
That without arrows unwind.


On the edge of a sleepy blue morning
Just before dawn's blade:
Golden, glittering, a town is sprawling
Within an ashen green glade!

Oh! Perhaps our home we've found!
Cried the Admiral in glee;
But alas! Replete with fears unfound,
It was not to be.

We neard hopefully, without ire
But, the Devil's Sorcery:
With a quick jab and a slow fire,
They put us out of misery.

Discrimination

(Thanks to my bro)

Have you ever realized that there are never any waitresses in restaurants in India?

Why?

Music and Life

Alan Watts got it right:
(turn up volume, it's a bit soft)



(watch it again!)

Life is a musical. Not a Start -> Finish goal. I wish *some* people would try and understand that.

Ecosystem

There's this place in Ahmedabad. It's an eating joint. Toran. "Cafe Toran" as I incorrectly keep calling it. I came across this place...

Aside: incidentally what do you call it when you discover a place, but only because you were led to it by someone who already knew it? "I discovered the place"? Too full of yourself. "The place was discovered unto me"? Too Ancient english-ey ... :-/

Anyways - Toran. Chaos in '06 thanks to Bolli, et al. It is a veg place. But it is a brilliant place. As Giddu put it "If you're eating veg, eat this stuff. Or else just go kill an animal". It's infinite food for some 80 bucks. And I mean *infinite*.

The service is awesome. And at the end of your meal, you hear stuff like "Sir kyaa sir.. Aap toh kuchh nahi khaye.. Ek aur roti sar.. Ek aur." And when fat people ask for "Normal rotis" (without ghee), the server gheefully (forgive the bad pun) replies: "Ghee ke bina kya maja aayega?" And proceeds to pour an inordinate amount of fat onto the puny roti.

Fast forward 2008: The place has become freakishly popular. And why shouldn't it? But here's the thing: There's a whole set of shops that thrive off this place.

Whilst waiting to be seated (there is *always* a waiting line), one shop guy sells chai and sutta. Another shopkeeper next to it serves little edibles like chips and sandwiches. Basically, their only reason for selling stuff is Toran.

And you also find autorickshaw drivers parked just outside, waiting for passengers. And what about the big hoardings around the place? What choice do you have but to look at them?

So, the essential point is: There is this whole ecosystem of stuff built around this one successful joint. Seems so cool na?

Or perhaps I'm too much into the "economics" mood these days.. Either way, Toran rocks :)

Counter-Strike

I've just come across the perfrect CS map: It is (wait for it... wait for it...) IIMA Campus! Seriously no kidding - the layout of the place, the brickey red feel, short buildings. Archways, big round holes, seedy spots to snipe from.

Windows overlooking courtyards, quick confusing exits to dart in and out of, curving stairwells. Brilliant I say.

And to top it off is the dusty, grimy atmosphere. It feels like de_dust with a slight tinge of de_aztec.

This Really Happened At Work...

Person 1: (Supposed to take a flight to Chennai) So I should go to the airport by train right?

Person 2: You can go to either Santacruz or Vile Parle.

Person 1: (With a big question mark on his face) How can a single flight go from both places???

:-/

Just before Sharingan

Naruto Manga is seriously *brilliant* :D ... Go Sasuke! Go!

"The Horror... The Horror..."

This is the end, Beautiful friend
This is the end, My only friend, the end

Of our elaborate plans, the end
Of everything that stands, the end
No safety or surprise, the end
I'll never look into your eyes...again

Words from The Doors' dark poetic verses. Never have they fit a movie more perfectly.

"I love the smell of napalm in the morning…It smells like…victory."

A paradox of madness and thought. "The bravest, most honest account of the futility of war ever filmed"

"I watched a snail crawl along the edge of a straight razor. That's my dream. That's my nightmare. Crawling, slithering, along the edge of a straight... razor... and surviving. "

"He likes you because you're still alive"

It's about the Vietnam war. Apocalypse Now.

A Dream

If I were to say:
I miss you today.
Invisible: your way,
Yet only a car crash away.
Would you let me feel your hand?

I totally agree

If you wind up with a boring, miserable life because you listened to your mom, your dad, your teacher, your priest or some guy on TV telling you how to do your shit, then YOU DESERVE IT.

~ From The Real Frank Zappa Book by Frank Zappa

Encore!

Mood Indigo 2007. Was the most fun I've had in a long time. We did so much! Here's a quick roundup:

Begging - Yups. The best staccato begging session *ever*! We earned some 150 bucks apparently! We also came on TV and on the net! Long live the buttscratchers!

Unicycling - A one wheel cycle... And we (sort-of) managed to ride it! The dude was teaching us. Nice fun :) Must do this more!

Treasure Hunt - Came in 2nd. Damn you Jose!... More phones again :-/

Kp sang - At LIVEWIRE elims and at this chilled out "Sultans of Strings". It was this sort of impromptu jam-singing thingy that only KP can pull off. He started reading advertisements as lyrics!

Dancing to RD Burman - Okay, this was cheesy. I shan't elaborate, but just that a small bunch of us inspired the whole convo to come out and swing around!

Pronites - LIVEWIRE and Pop Nite. I think Pop Nite was better... No.. really!... TAAQ were damn good too :)

Jam - lol lol lol lol... (as usual)

sms clear 40 - congos Arvind :)

Nikita won - a VIAO and an XBOX 360! Lucky bitch. I'm jealous. Yeah.. she cracked off at MI Most Wanted. Great job you!

Met old friends - All the MI punters, GIDDU!!!, Sahil, Mahesh et al, Grish, Nidhi, Nikita. Great to see everyone again :)

And new ones - :)

Loads of drinking all round (I actually drunk *very* little this year :P)

Broken toenails. Sigh.

Happy New Year

The first Sunrise of the new year :-)

Wishing everyone a really great year ahead. May your resolutions last longer than last year! :-P