globetrotter09

puppets

2011-08-04T23:24:00.001-07:00

OK. so there are vacancies for puppets.

Who is the puppet master? wont tell :)

Yellow again

2011-06-24T19:25:00.001-07:00

We all live in a yellow submarine...

gagged !!!

2011-06-19T07:53:00.000-07:00

So much to say - so little energy to do so.
when the brain is doing a lot of processing - its first fallout seems to be a restriction in 'saying'.
it thinks and wants to express but doesnt quite get down to it - and when it does its as vague as this !!!

Plastic

2011-06-13T00:49:00.001-07:00

So all credit card machines in this part of frankfurt terminal are down. Imagine the chaos. Most people not even accepting anything other than euros because they can't convert without the machines... Finally found 6 euros in coins for breakfast.

Only the menu in common

2011-06-13T00:46:00.001-07:00

Son's birthday party. Difference from last year... Everything, not even one guest repeated. Only the food remained the same. He wouldn't accept a variation on that one.

Cash, phone and...

2011-06-13T00:41:00.001-07:00

Security check at frankfurt. Big guy is directing the emptying of my pockets. Passport, wallet, phone, gun... Gun? I look at him and we both burst out laughing. Their definition of security with a smile :)

too few hours

2011-06-09T08:46:00.000-07:00

the problem when i get started with work is that the day never seems to have enough hours... is that what they call a workaholic.
today was just one of those days when you want to do so many things and can keep doing them forever.
have always had some hobby or the other but havnt kept at any of them as long or none have given me as much pleasure as work that i like :)

a full meal

2011-06-09T08:33:00.000-07:00

cooked a full meal after a long time - felt good.
i enjoy cooking - gives a sense of having done something (mostly something useful).
in my dreams i build bridges and great monuments - something that can be seen and appreciated - in real life of course i build something invisible to the naked eye - not that its a bad job - just so invisible :)

Using swype

2011-06-07T08:17:00.001-07:00

Writing this and the earlier post using swype.
fiddled with the settings a little and now I'm kind of loving it :)
I enjoy the spell correction most of all...

The joys of sportsmanship

2011-06-07T08:13:00.001-07:00

As we played squash this evening, I kept getting beaten. That's when my partner pointed out the major error I was making (I am relatively new to the game).
Well the good thing is it raised the level of the game and we had more fun. The perils of sportsmanship of course is that he lost the game thereafter - but we both enjoyed that game more than all of the before.

Good strong muscles

2011-06-06T07:03:00.001-07:00

Well i argue you never use your upper body muscles in this day and age... But lo and behold you do - though rarely.
Remembered this argument as i carried a full gas cylinder from the neighbours to my house. Ah the nice tingling in the arms :)

an exotic week

2011-06-05T08:13:00.000-07:00

of fruit and drink (all of the non alcoholic variety).
hows this for a list
jackfruit, jamun, star fruit, litchee, plum
and juices of
pomegranate, guava, mango and kokum.
hmmm... summer has a few benefits for sure doesn't it?

Tum jiyo hazaron saal

2011-06-03T08:06:00.001-07:00

Har saal mein ho din hazaar...
Now heres this guy who has probably called me 2 or 3 times in my life - and i am just finishing off a call with a friend where we are talking about him and he calls...
Not sure the friend likes the subject line but it is funny how these things work :)

cars have locks

2011-06-01T23:41:00.000-07:00

one gets so used to the metal tiger with no locks to speak of - that i spent a full 20 seconds tugging at the car door this morning wondering why i couldn't get in!!!
its locked - needs a key.
well ok - wouldn't it be great in a world where locks weren't needed?

May - it be the last day

2011-05-31T00:52:00.000-07:00

No - i am not being a doomsayer...
rather in the syle of capt jack sparrow "it be the last day of may"
the end of May used to evoke a happy reaction back then.
it signified the killing summer drawing to a close - a new school year starting - back with friends and of course the coming of the rains very soon - rains that i have always loved.

oh how beautiful

2011-05-29T22:18:00.000-07:00

saturday night epiromized the beautiful game and everything we love about it.
this Barca team is probably the best that every played on this planet.
keep at it - you guys give us hope in the times of the Netherlands, the Ronaldos and the Gatusos.
Sir Alex's expression said it all didn't it - no shame losing to this side - and congratulations on not playing ugly Man Utd.

lifes good

2011-05-27T05:06:00.001-07:00

Seen on my 1 year old's T-shirt this morning
"Life is good when you are ME"
really?

when every day is a picnic

2011-05-25T22:20:00.001-07:00

my son is in that kind of an age...
summer holidays, some food, a hamper, a mat and every breakfast is converted into this nice little picnic!!!
oh what fun.

Intellectual stimulation

2011-05-25T10:17:00.001-07:00

Can be produced by beer and boredome on a lazy evening... How?
Well advertisements (really difficult ones) that i couldnt follow for weeks or months all became clear as i sat in front of the idiot box in such a state.
Thinking clearly i was but what were they that produced such ads thinking when they did it?

still - yellow

2011-05-25T02:19:00.001-07:00

hard luck danny boy. hope you get another chance in the final

Onions

2011-05-19T02:42:00.000-07:00

when i was younger i ran on most mornings.
in onion fields down a narrow road.

every winter they harvested the crop and stored it - i was fascinated - yes everything smells like onions but i was fascinated by their storage huts - i found a photo on the web

you could even buy it off the fields - for about Rs 10-15 for a 20kg bag.

As i visited my childhood home one of these days i drove down the same road - no longer narrow - now a 4 lane high traffic road.

there were no traces of onions, storage huts or even the fields. concrete everywhere - the farmers (or middle men) have made a lot of progress...

hijacked in passing

2011-05-18T01:34:00.000-07:00

a scene from this morning reminded me of an interesting incident i observed a few months ago.
peak traffic time one morning after a night of heavy rains - theres a major disruption because the rains have opened up a very big pothole blocking a full lane.
so there is this bulldozer going on its merry way when 2 policemen go up and have a word.
what they have done is requested the bulldozer guy to pick up some gravel from the roadside - dump it into the pothole and roll over it a few times. the bulldozer guy obliges and in 5 minutes we have a usable road.
surely no case of missing initiative there - imagine having to do this through the normal bureaucratic channels.

a fresh pair every time

2011-05-17T10:22:00.000-07:00

my top 4 reason why you would be forced to wash your clothes after just 1 wear.
1) do something which makes you sweat like a hog and hope that the sweat smells like one too - gross eh?
2) have a nagging wife :(
3) have a dog that loves puddles (and you).
4) love biking in an indian city - especially when it rains.

well - thankfully i have nothing to do with the first 2 - generally avoid 3 and really like 4.

whats your top 4?

Abort, retry, fail?

2011-05-17T10:10:00.000-07:00

Which of these did she choose is what went through my mind as our airplane coming in for a landing at pune suddenly put on full engine power and pulled up.
Well a full minute later she comes on the PA and announces "as we came in for our final landing ATC announced dogs on the runway and we had to abort. We are circling back and will be rescheduled for landing soon"
Dogs? Well i guess she did choose the right option whatever the problem may have been...

Maa mati manush

2011-05-14T02:31:00.001-07:00

The results both in bengal and tn makes one hope that the voter has gotten over the very basic needs of food and started asking for better governance.
Good luck to us all in this pursuit

The bootstrap effect

2011-05-11T09:22:00.001-07:00

When the standard of living of the country goes up its rich become richer, middle classes become richer and so do the poor.
I call it the bootstrap effect and i believe (without sufficient data though) that a higher percentage of people in this country today live in relatively less trying conditions and have a better chance of a brighter future...
The said bootstrap is however elastic in nature and hence the difference between the classes seems to go up - a dangerous condition indeed and one whose fix is hard to grasp (probably socialism).
In effect the employment of maids drivers and cooks is a way to distribute the wealth in such a massively populated country via this effect. Fair? Donno...

thump wump wump

2011-05-10T10:11:00.000-07:00

goes the metal tiger.
it rouses the heart and drowns out the world.
with the wind on the face - its a beautiful time to reflect and just enjoy the ride...

Quite a bit of salt

2011-05-08T08:55:00.001-07:00

In that salt and pepper hair of mine....
And while the barber did not claim it to be "galich" this time around, he sure did want me to spend some good money on hair dye...
Par yeh baal kya maine dhoop mein pakaye hai? I refused to give up the distinguished look ;)

so whats my style

2011-05-06T07:33:00.000-07:00

अजीब कश्मकश है जिंदगी में

someone help me decide.

good wine, confirmed bachelors and duality

2011-05-03T00:43:00.000-07:00

A few glasses of good wine later - i asked this confirmed bachelor if he would ever get married.
well - after a short discussion we concluded that yes he should but only to his perfect dual.
happy hunting buddy...

A reminder to question

2011-04-27T19:50:00.001-07:00

Its strange and insightful at times when a computer generated random password that you use several times a day starts with "why"
Well reminds me to be inquisitive at all times for sure.

Greenland

2011-04-23T20:44:00.003-07:00

From an airplane. Nothing green about it.

Dal roti and conversation

2011-04-23T20:44:00.001-07:00

Great fun to catch up with an old roomie after several years - 7 to be precise...
He cancels his weekend trip with family, invites me for lunch on an hours notice and we get talking like in the old days...
Some excellent jain lunch done the 2.5 hours feel like mere minutes and he insists that i reschedule my flight and calls the airline too...
Alas its not always possible. We say our goodbyes but as we part he drives me to the airport himself promising to return my rental car at a later time...
I'm touched old pal...

2 BB

2011-04-20T16:18:00.000-07:00

thats Before Blogger (or at least before it was aquired by google)
it was the age when posts could not be written on e-devices on flights.
did i not write - well absolutely did - on several picture post cards.
i gave them to the wife after my trips - i believe she has lost them now :) with Blogger they are at least safe until google decides to delete them or some random hacker messes it up ;)

The offer

2011-04-18T09:47:00.001-07:00

Summer 1997
Somewhere in the western ghats. 4 hours walk from the nearest motorable road.
We are a group of 6 boys camped overnight at a lone temple on a hillside.
Early the next morning we have an unexpected visitor. A bearded man from the neighbouring village. He is inviting us to some celebration in the village that night. He offers us mutton, unlimited local alcohol and "bam bam" which from his actions is something you smoke and then go into a trance !!!!
Well - there were a few disappointed souls in the group when we decided to pass up the offer and continue our trek instead...

biryani and thanda

2011-04-18T02:07:00.000-07:00

this weekend an old friend came over with biryani. and he likes thums up with it - so we went to get it.
friend : One thums up 1.5l please. chilled.
Shopkeeper: OK
friend (touching the bottle): are yeh thanda nahi hai.
Shopkeeper (with the straightest face) : yeh to thums up hai. thanda matlab coca cola.

!!!!

वह बचपन की यादें

2011-04-14T08:37:00.001-07:00

As i made the famous Nescafe shake for the wife and me - i remembered the many many hot summers from childhood with wet curtains - improvised tents and tons of nescafe shake :)

and all the other memories - वह कागज़ की कश्ती - वह बारिश का पानी.

do i want it all back - na...

i'm happy with the present, looking forward to the future - the past is a good memory from time to time thats all...

Scorpions

2011-04-13T01:01:00.000-07:00

The Big city nights post reminds me of scorpions.
Dec 2009 - at this resort in the middle of the hills a few kms inland of kanyakumari.
i am sleeping with my 2.5 yr old son in a nice clean room on a newly made bed. at about 3a.m my son stirs a little so i move too - just then i feel this excrutiating pain in my right ear lobe - its so bad that i literally jump out of bed with a scream and hit the light switch - for a few seconds i am convinced i saw a scorpion - we take off every sheet and search everywhere but cant find one - i cant locate a local to discuss with either but the ear is red - painful and swelling and i am miles from the nearest medical facility. i do the only thing i can think of - stay awake for the next 2-3 hours and look for signs of poisoning or allergic reactions - thankfully theres none but i still cant find the scorpion - its almost like i dreamt it up.
next morning my son is playing inside the room and he goes to pick up this wrapper of baby wipes lying under the bed. for the 2nd time in just a few hours i jump up like i've been bitten - its the only place i havnt checked - under that wrapper - i get there just as he lifts it - in time to see the scorpion and get the son away.
that afternoon at the reception another guy staying in the neighbouring cottage is complaining that he couldnt sleep in the night due to the howling wind and is unhappy with the resort - so i show him my ear and narrate my story - he checked out within the next 30 minutes - i stayed for another 2 nights...

big city nights

2011-04-12T02:55:00.000-07:00

The Tokyo Hilton 23rd floor - sometime in the middle of the night.
i sit by the window and stare into the night time Tokyo skyline - the minutes go by.
every few minutes you hear an ambulance scream past sirens blazing.
you feel like a tiny spec in a vast universe -
i still maintain the Tokyo Hilton top floors are among the most depressing places i've stayed in.
not depressing enough to feel suicidal - but enough to increase the mini bar consumption :)

2011-04-11T08:08:00.001-07:00

The water, the twilight and the moon

As i lay on my back in the pool this evening i experienced this rare feeling of calm and serenity.
It was twilight, there was a beautiful half moon in the cloudless sky and the kites were returning home gliding at their majestic best.
But all good things come to an end - some quite quickly too...
Very soon they found me - the big fat black ugly blood sucking mosquitoes. Discretion being the better part of valor i beat a rather hasty retreat :)

2011-04-10T22:15:00.000-07:00

A twinkle in their eyes

Story is from a train 9-10 years ago - place called Yadgir - 2nd sleeper.

travelling unreserved (for a short journey) is this 30 something man and his 9 year old son. This little boy has this easy mannerism - beautiful smile and a keen mind. In no time he is a darling of the crowd and he seems to be enjoying it too - theres a twinkle in his eyes - wait something strange about them - what?

His father then tells us the story about how this only son of his was diagnosed with cancer of the brain and eye - that his one eye had to be surgically removed and replaced with an artificial one - that he spent months in a faraway hospital in Mumbai and spent days every month travelling to make it there. How he had to neglect his booming business to take the child from doctor to doctor and chemo to chemo. but both father and child had this serene air about them and not once did either of them complain. the few of us who were complaining about the heat and the dust just shut up and stared. i remember the evening in vivid detail so many years later - hope the family is doing fine... and hope that i can stop complaining and keep smiling like they could...

2010-05-26T19:13:00.000-07:00

Discover - a weekend adventure
Discover brain games is an exclusively weekend venture. All the games are designed, written and uploaded on weekends and holidays. So why do we do it. to channelize our creativity, keep ourselves thinking and most importantly in the hope that the games give someone else some pleasure.

If you do like the games at discover please do give us some space - on your websites, blogs, social networks or just by word of mouth.

we are available on facebook as discover-brain-games and on the web at http://www.discover-brain-games.com/

2008-12-17T08:53:00.000-08:00

they tell me the wright brothers flew their first aircraft on this day in 1903.
as they do i remember for some reason an interesting episode on a flight.

Indian Airlines flight from Pune to Bangalore - sometime in 2004...

We are at takeoff (on the runway ready to leave) - flight is ontime
Captain : Crew to takeoff stations.
20 seconds.
Captain : Ladies and gentlemen. we have a technical problem. we are returning to our gate where you will need to get off the plane and wait. inconvenience regretted.
a collective sigh goes through the cabin as we begin taxing back down the runway towards the gate.
10 seconds of taxing - then a sudden acceleration
Captain : the technical problem is corrected - we are taking off. please relax and enjoy the flight.
10 seconds later we are airborne.
Not too many people look 'relaxed'.

i still wonder what the technical problem was - forgot to release hand brake ??

2008-12-13T01:56:00.000-08:00

i am myself amazed to return back here and find that its been more than 2 years since i wrote on this blog.
how life and times fly by - how one's definitions of important things and priorities change.
anyways here i am back with a promise to myself - to pen something down whenever i can(hopefully the next post is not another 2 years away).

2006-08-18T04:47:00.000-07:00

Hilsa (ilish) is the national fish of Bangladesh. The body is strongly compressed and moderately deep with dorsal and ventral profile equally convex. The upper jaw has a distinct median notch. Regularly arranged medium-sized scales cover the metallic silver-coloured body. Body length may reach up to 60 cm, but commonly found specimens measure 35 to 40 cm. A large-sized hilsa weighs about 2.5 kg. Females grow faster, and are usually larger than males

>> coming to the point, its probably the tastiest fish in the world... so bring out some large sized ilish please :-)

2006-07-12T20:59:00.000-07:00

----------the anatomy of blackmail

I love to deal with the man with a sword. His victory rests solely on the fact that I am afraid of the sword – on the premise that I must perform an action (of being afraid) for him to be a winner – I can choose not to perform that action !!!

I love the blackmailer who works on the premise that he has a reason that I care about – “my caring” is what he banks on – in truth I just may not.

Of course I deal with many such men in everyday corporate life – they give me just so many reasons to smile – and to blog :)

2006-07-11T03:03:00.000-07:00

Captain’s log.
Stardate: July 5 2006.
Location : somewhere between delirium and relief.

The voyages of the enterprise have taken me from one sleepless night to another, one DRC error to the other – in discovering strange new problems and pushing the threshold of human (read my) knowledge.
It has kept me away from these pages – but the end result has been worth it.
Now the fingers are crossed that when the “test chip” returns it is all hale and hearty and we can savor the full pleasure of all the effort of these past few days.

End log.

2006-06-12T16:39:00.000-07:00

------------- the city of immortals.
Globetrotting brings me to Washington D.C.
Even as I wander the hallowed lawns of power – amongst monuments to great men with immortal names, Achilles comes to my mind.
Achilles who, between “death and an immortal name” on one hand and “a long happy (but dull) life with loved ones” on the other, chose the first.
In this city I am confronted by people who crave for fame at the expense of family – at amazing odds and with no guarantees (and they say Vegas is their gambling capital).
I wonder what I’d do given the same choice??

2006-06-11T20:42:00.000-07:00

------------- the flight to Dallas
I write this one sitting at Washington Dulles airport.
They have put me on a turbo-prop to Dallas – not a plane I like, but that’s the topic for another blog.
How many times have you been delayed by traffic while flying? Plenty you say, too many planes taking off and landing is common at major airports …
Well I’m sitting here and taking delays too – most likely due to traffic : they tell me the reason is that “ the first officer has not arrived yet – he will be here shortly – stuck in traffic” -- ?? !!

2006-05-29T21:41:00.000-07:00

------------- the hopeless romantic
We watched the movie “fanaa” last night.
Amidst old men singing around the monuments of new delhi, a terrorist desperately in love with his family and some unwanted political statements were more “shers” than I have heard in the last 2 years taken together.
One which I liked sounded something like (corrected since the first post on recommendation by anant... oops Anant) –
Sharaab peene de masjid mein baith kar 'Ghalib',
Ya woh jagah bata de jahan khuda na ho.
So i suggest you go to the movie with that bottle of rum,
To drink for the wasted money and time in gam.

p.s: If you still need to watch the movie, do so at the night show like me, so you feel that much less guilty about sleeping through most of it.

2006-05-23T21:26:00.000-07:00

------------- the horsemen
“why do you move so fast?” said one.
“don’t shake up the system. It need not be perfect, stability is more important” said another.
“better to carry forward the existing than to change – you may possibly fall in the effort” said a third.
We grinned –
Girte hain maidane jung mein shehsawaar hee. Woh tifn kya girega jo khud ghutnon ke bal chalta hain.

2006-05-13T07:39:00.000-07:00

------------- the knock
Knock knock
Me : who’s there?
Voice : Buddha.
Me : Buddha who ?
Voice : the chief minister of West Bengal, Mr Buddhadeb.
Who has just come to power in a red wave.
And I’m doing my best, this state and this city to save.
Me : yes for better or for worse, both of those are things I must grant you. Congratulations and best wishes.

2006-05-08T20:53:00.000-07:00

------ the birthday party
it is my brother's birthday. he is a doctor who is presently studying for his post graduate entrance exams.
we decide to have a party at a nearby restaurant. we arrive at the restaurant, are greated with a smile and a question -- " do you have reservations sir ?". "No" we say... "i'm sorry then, we can't find any seats for you. they are all reserved."
my brother shrugs and says to me with a smile -- "don't worry buddy - the story of my life -- seats are always 'reserved' for someone else..."

2006-05-03T08:33:00.000-07:00

---------- the swimming pool

My apartment has a west facing window and a swimming pool view.
This evening typing away on my laptop i draw aside the curtains. i see a brilliant sunset. i see joyous children in the pool screaming in delight at their own games. i remember how i enjoyed these evening swims when i was a kid, i decide to join in their fun.
about to leave for the swim i look at my computer and remember something...
it is now night, the sun has set and i am still typing away -- wordsworth flashes through my mind :

Whither is fled the visionary gleam?
Where is it now, the glory and the dream?

wearily i get up, draw the curtains and return to work.

2006-04-30T07:05:00.000-07:00

-------------- the first blog

A blog, they said to me
Can convey your feelings for free
Rest of the world may read
Of things you said and did.
So i got on to blogger
To make the audience a little bigger.
In confusion on what to write
Chose a doublet - as a first on the site.

But thought it may be too easy to do
Let me make it an acrostic too
On these terms i write my first blog
Gifted poet ;-) , or is this just a futile slog ??

------------------------------------------------

p.s: sorry about using the term "doublet" loosely, forgive me that.