Have you noticed? Tuesdays are the worst days of the week. Well, Monday is pretty horrible, yes, but it atleast has a.... um... personality, even if a completely obnoxious one. If I ever anthropomorphize the days of the week, Monday would be the wife from Hell. Monday would be the stereotypical nagging, annoying wife. She will always want to ask directions, want to talk to her when something important is on TV, wants to know where you are all the time, doesn't let you do something fun because, well, she doesn't. But, sometimes when you least expect it, she comes up with a gesture or an act, so completely endearing that for a moment, you think it was well worth it.
Now Tuesdays. They are the diffident, sweaty, bald guys, who always seem to talk in a whisper. With absolutely no verve, they are sloppy and double your work. They are those managers who expect you to slog your ass off, expect you to toe the line and screw up your appraisal by being honest when nobody else is. They have no skills at conversation and when they try hard to hold one, they are so awful that sometimes you have to talk to them just to put them out of their misery. Besides, you cannot help glancing at your watch every 5 minutes.
Wednesdays are the really, really smart kids who actually know that they are smart and attractive. They can be fun sometimes, but they can also be terribly be annoying. Sometimes they do go on and on with their smug little faces and you want to smack them a little bit. But, by and large they are Sunny and nice and extremely easy to get along.
Thursdays are your friends who you don't mind hanging out with once in a while. But you wouldn't pick their calls on a weekend, lest they ask you out and it becomes a habit or something. They are the room mates who want to go shopping for groceries when you'd rather be reading. If you have to travel together you don't mind it... But, you dont really go out of your way to meet them or ring them up at 12 am on their Birthday. You leave a scrap and forget about it. You snicker at their photos and discuss them passingly when you are gossiping with your friend. It's always a question of almost being there.
Friday is the compulsive flirt that you always want to take out and can have a good time with. You always have a great time. But, you always end up at her door and shake hands and leave. She is either not relly intersted in you or you just can't muster the courage. The anticipation that built over the week leaves you completely winded when it's completley shattered when she closes her front door with her dazzling smile. Despite the fact that she promises world with her dazzling smiles and frequent pats, clutches and squeezes, it all amounts to nothing, because, she likes someone else or doesn't take you seriously. You are the guy she leaves stranded when her boyfriend suddenly changes her mind and wants to hang out with her after all!
Saturday is like an old friend you meet after a long time and you are comfortable with any time of the day. You can just sit and chill, talk about anything and nothing at all. She/ He is always willing to listen to you and shares your interests. There might be a lot of people you want to go out with, but, satudays are one of the few people you want to stay home with. Just Yakking away to glory or play poker at home or down a few drinks with. You don't have to pretend with each other and best of all, you actually like watching Cricket with them.
Sunday, well, Sunday is the beautiful girl you had a terrible crush on and always wanted to ask gher out. You are in the middle of your date when you realize that she is a terrible bore and she thinks Jeffry Archer is the greatest writer in the woirld and that Da Vinci code could actually be true. But, she sits in the next desk and the prospect of having to call her again after the date fills you with so much despair that you feel like howling then and there.
So there it is..... The days of the week according to Hari. If someone actually bothers to read this, it would be nice to see what you think. If you fall in to one of the above categories and you feel offended. Please let me know.... Come on, I've named a day after you! You should be flattered
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Enroute...
Exactly a week after I was initially supposed to leave,I finally start for my third trip to the US. This time it is going to be Minneapolis. Yeah, I heard about the weather! It is strange how I spend every Fall, winter and Spring in the West and miss out on Summer! Looks like I will be missing Diwali this time as well. Third year in a row!
I spent yesterday and today mentally preparing for the trip. Which means I never left home, ordered pizza and surfed the whole day. For all the attraction that a first world country like the US provides, I have always found myself to be a reluctant tourist and a diffident sight-seer. I've always maintained that the worst part of any travel is the wait in the airport. The truth of that statement reasserted itself today. It's even worse if you have to lock up an empty house and reach the airport hours in advance. I am always early for a flight- be it domestic or international. Early as in not a close half hour or one hour early; I usually manage to reach the airport 3-4 hours in advance. It's almost as if I like being bored or something! Why do we always need to have something to rail about however great things are?
Anyway here I am, all settled down at 5 am with atleast 2 hours to go before my flight takes off, trying to stave off sleep. I did manage to catch some sleep last night, even if it was not that much. I read a little bit of the "Grave thief"(Tom Lloyd) last night and had to do a little bit of last minute packing. It was a quarter to twelev before I could crash. I had set the alarm at 2:20 so that I could have a bath before the cabbie came at 3, only to be woken up by mom and dad. They said their goodbyes and I promptly went back to sleep. The Alarm started screeching at 2:20, after which I switched on the motor and the geyser before a quick nap. I got up again at 2:30, had a bath and did a last minute check. Everything was in order. After a quick peek at my face book and my mailbox, I called the cabbie. It was 3. By the time we left the house it was 3:15. I reached BIAL at 4 and got done with the formalities by half past 4. Somewhere between all the stamping that I had to get through a guy petulantly refused to give me his Pen because he had to check in. I am pretty sure he was in the same flight as me! But, guess who checked in first? Although, you know what? I hope the Gods are not so pissed at me that they'd seat me beside that guy! Now that would be irritating. For once, it would be great if they sat me next to a pretty girl, even if it would make absolutely no difference even if I, against all probablity managed to muster enough courage to say Hello!
Anyway, I guess thats it for now.... I guess I will go bact to the Grave Thief now. Or may be pull out the House of Chains. It'd be great if I found Dust of Dreams in Heathrow. That alone would make the whole trip worthwhile. I intend to catch up with Suresh and Divey there as well! Atleast over the Phone! Lets see.... Anyhoo... Time to go..... I will post when I can... until then... cheerio!
I spent yesterday and today mentally preparing for the trip. Which means I never left home, ordered pizza and surfed the whole day. For all the attraction that a first world country like the US provides, I have always found myself to be a reluctant tourist and a diffident sight-seer. I've always maintained that the worst part of any travel is the wait in the airport. The truth of that statement reasserted itself today. It's even worse if you have to lock up an empty house and reach the airport hours in advance. I am always early for a flight- be it domestic or international. Early as in not a close half hour or one hour early; I usually manage to reach the airport 3-4 hours in advance. It's almost as if I like being bored or something! Why do we always need to have something to rail about however great things are?
Anyway here I am, all settled down at 5 am with atleast 2 hours to go before my flight takes off, trying to stave off sleep. I did manage to catch some sleep last night, even if it was not that much. I read a little bit of the "Grave thief"(Tom Lloyd) last night and had to do a little bit of last minute packing. It was a quarter to twelev before I could crash. I had set the alarm at 2:20 so that I could have a bath before the cabbie came at 3, only to be woken up by mom and dad. They said their goodbyes and I promptly went back to sleep. The Alarm started screeching at 2:20, after which I switched on the motor and the geyser before a quick nap. I got up again at 2:30, had a bath and did a last minute check. Everything was in order. After a quick peek at my face book and my mailbox, I called the cabbie. It was 3. By the time we left the house it was 3:15. I reached BIAL at 4 and got done with the formalities by half past 4. Somewhere between all the stamping that I had to get through a guy petulantly refused to give me his Pen because he had to check in. I am pretty sure he was in the same flight as me! But, guess who checked in first? Although, you know what? I hope the Gods are not so pissed at me that they'd seat me beside that guy! Now that would be irritating. For once, it would be great if they sat me next to a pretty girl, even if it would make absolutely no difference even if I, against all probablity managed to muster enough courage to say Hello!
Anyway, I guess thats it for now.... I guess I will go bact to the Grave Thief now. Or may be pull out the House of Chains. It'd be great if I found Dust of Dreams in Heathrow. That alone would make the whole trip worthwhile. I intend to catch up with Suresh and Divey there as well! Atleast over the Phone! Lets see.... Anyhoo... Time to go..... I will post when I can... until then... cheerio!
Friday, September 18, 2009
Book Reviews
The Stormcaller by Tom LloydI started reading this series after reading about it on Joe Abercombie's blog. While this not exactly Malazan Book of the Fallen, it is much better than most of the stuff around. It follows the standard Fantasy device of an unlikely boy coming to great power. While the world building and some of the characters are sound, plot-wise apart from a few good moments, there is hardly anything pathbreaking. Plodding language and less than epic themes or grit and sheer drama pull down the book. It is not a bad read while you are waiting for "The Dust of Dreams", "The Gathering Storm" and "The Dance of Dragons"
View all my reviews >>
The Magicians by Lev GrossmanAn interseting book purely because of the comparisons it will surely evoke with Harry Potter. Not as well written, though and the narrative slips in the last one third of the book. But solid otherwise. A one time read when you are bored!
View all my reviews >>
I'm Back
I think it is pretty strange that I never bother to update this blog when I am India. Maybe it is because the exertions of a normal weekday in India is so much more sapping than its equivalent in the US. Or it could be because there is so much more to do in India than in the US. Whatever it is, when I get down to actually doing this, I really do enjoy the whole exercise of putting my memories down at least when I actually get down to actually doing it. So what have I been doing the last 5 Months?
I landed in India on 1st may. The day was also Appa's 57th Birthday. Both appa and amma had come to the airport to pick me up. I spent the rest of the week chilling at home. I always take a week off after an onsite trip, a deep breath of fresh air before I plunge back in to the chaotic currents of everyday life of a young Indian IT professional. Then there is the Jet lag..... Anyway, I always get back to real life as if stepping out of a portal behind which time stands still. I always have a lot of time in Ranipet. Between bouts of unrestrained hogging and mindless games, I did find the time to vist relatives in Chennai and a temple near Kanchipuram. Pictures here
It was there that I learnt that I had to go to Mangalore. I spent about six weeks there. Three in the company guesthouse and three weeks in a house with six other people. Now that the bitterness of being stuck in the middle of nowhere has sort of worn off and with the abstraction provided by the passage of time, I can safely say that I actually managed to not hate the whole experience. It was there that I realized how much I hated eating alone. I might think and act like a loner but I really do prefer soem company especially someone who always wants to do the things I don't. Left to my own devices I tend to vegetate... and not a little.....
I was back in Bangalore in July. Two and a half months of profligate living. Great food, good company, Movies, music, a huge load of comics and a little bit of serious reading. I did not read much at all. The only new, non-genre book that I managed to finish in the last four months was "Special topics in Calamity Physics". More on the book in a later post. Man, did I finish a lot of comics? From Preacher, to Superman to Black Orchid to Fables and The Sandman. It was fun! I also started watching the older episodes of X-Files and the office. I also started rereading A song of Fire and Ice, Malazan Book of the Fallen and the wheel of time.
I began a brand new chapter in the Grand Narrrative of my life when I got engaged to Haripriya(Priya) on September 4th. I promise. More details in a later post.
That's whats been happening to in the last four months. So what've you been up to?
I landed in India on 1st may. The day was also Appa's 57th Birthday. Both appa and amma had come to the airport to pick me up. I spent the rest of the week chilling at home. I always take a week off after an onsite trip, a deep breath of fresh air before I plunge back in to the chaotic currents of everyday life of a young Indian IT professional. Then there is the Jet lag..... Anyway, I always get back to real life as if stepping out of a portal behind which time stands still. I always have a lot of time in Ranipet. Between bouts of unrestrained hogging and mindless games, I did find the time to vist relatives in Chennai and a temple near Kanchipuram. Pictures here
It was there that I learnt that I had to go to Mangalore. I spent about six weeks there. Three in the company guesthouse and three weeks in a house with six other people. Now that the bitterness of being stuck in the middle of nowhere has sort of worn off and with the abstraction provided by the passage of time, I can safely say that I actually managed to not hate the whole experience. It was there that I realized how much I hated eating alone. I might think and act like a loner but I really do prefer soem company especially someone who always wants to do the things I don't. Left to my own devices I tend to vegetate... and not a little.....
I was back in Bangalore in July. Two and a half months of profligate living. Great food, good company, Movies, music, a huge load of comics and a little bit of serious reading. I did not read much at all. The only new, non-genre book that I managed to finish in the last four months was "Special topics in Calamity Physics". More on the book in a later post. Man, did I finish a lot of comics? From Preacher, to Superman to Black Orchid to Fables and The Sandman. It was fun! I also started watching the older episodes of X-Files and the office. I also started rereading A song of Fire and Ice, Malazan Book of the Fallen and the wheel of time.
I began a brand new chapter in the Grand Narrrative of my life when I got engaged to Haripriya(Priya) on September 4th. I promise. More details in a later post.
That's whats been happening to in the last four months. So what've you been up to?
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